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It’s officially Lent. Hopefully this salmon recipe can come in handy for your next quick Friday dinner. The jalapeno pesto sauce for the angel hair pasta is refreshingly different from regular pesto. With the heat from the jalapenos and a splash of lime, it’s almost like a Thai pesto sauce. I served this meal with a spinach cucumber feta salad and glass of Big Fire Pinot Gris.

Place first 9 ingredients in a food processor and puree until mostly smooth (small chunks of pecan and herbs are fine). Heat jalapeno-lime pesto in a saute pan over medium-low heat. Add in vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer 5 to 10 minutes. Toss sauce with cooked angel hair pasta.

Serves 4 to 6

Broiled Salmon

4-6oz fillets of salmon, skinned
1/2 cup of your favorite marinade glaze (I used raspberry chipotle this time, you can also do a combination of Dijon mustard and honey, or soy sauce and ginger and brown sugar, as long as it has a semi-viscous consistency)

Preheat broiler. Spray broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Brush both sides of salmon fillets with prepared glaze. Broil (6” from heat) 8 to 10 minutes or until fish is lightly browned and opaque.

Serves 4

The homemade ice cream sandwiches are just a scoop of ice cream between two homemade cookies. I tried this quick cookie recipe made from cake mix and really loved it!

Since the Superbowl hasn’t been interesting to me personally for the last five years or so (no teams I care about have made it that far recently), the Oscars have taken over as the “big event” for a house party. This year, we did a Pick ‘Em ballot to add a little excitement to the superbowl of fashion. The red carpet (red tarp from Party City) was rolled out, and the guests had a great time! A sample of a few items from the party spread:

Coconut Balls
Renamed at the party as “Balls de Borat,” but perhaps the original moniker is more appetizing. These sweet treats tastes like cookie dough coated with coconut shavings, but no raw eggs are involved! The recipe is from Cooking with the Juggs, a souvenir cookbook with lots of party appetizer recipes from a tour with the loud and energetic Jugg sisters in Nashville, courtesy of my friend Lauren (thanks babe!). I cut back slightly on the sugar and butter content from the original recipe and the recipe below reflects the proportions of ingredients I used.

Roll dough into 1″ balls. Place balls on ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Cool completely before removing from pan.

Meanwhile, preparing frosting by gradually adding milk to the cup of powdered sugar in a small bowl. Blend until smooth. Dip cooled balls into frosting and roll in coconut flakes. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Cut loaf of pound cake into 1/2″ cubes. Place on bottom of trifle dish (or loaf pan if you don’t own fancy things like trifle dishes, see pic above). Top with vanilla yogurt, then raspberries, then whipped topping.

Serves 10 to 12

Mexican Sangria (aka Shortcut Sangria)I drink a lot of red wine with dinner but don’t always finish the bottle. Even though I have one of those wine saver pumps, I always like to open a new bottle with dinner. This refreshing quick sangria is the perfect way to clear out the stock of 1/4 to 1/3 full bottles of leftover wine.

After spending almost two hours preparing dinner Saturday night, Sunday lunch was going to be super simple. I had some leftover cooked white rice in the fridge, so the natural choice was to do a quick fried rice. Actually, sometimes I make extra steamed white rice when cooking just so I’ll have an excuse to make fried rice later in the week 🙂

In a bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a pinch of salt and a few pieces of spring onions.

Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wok over medium high heat. Stir-fry the peas and ham for about 2 minutes, the add 1 tbsp of soy sauce and the rice wine or sherry. Remove and keep warm in a foil-tented plate.

Heat another 1 tbsp of oil in the wok and lightly scramble the eggs. Add in rice, making sure that there are no large clumps and that the grains are separated, then the remaining 2 tbsp of oil and stir fry 2 more minutes. Add in remaining 1/2 tbsp of soy sauce, spring onions, and the ham and peas mixture and mix well for another 2 minutes or so, seasoning with additional salt to taste. And voila, lunch!

Feeling creative and patient (patience doesn’t come to me easily) Saturday night, I decided to tackle one of the more complicated recipes I’ve ever prepared. I was going to do Italian, without shortcuts, without cheating. And even though this manicotti is completely vegetarian, I was informed by others who tried the dish that it tastes like bacon. If you don’t believe me, try out the recipe for yourself. But I have to warn you, it’s definitely not a 30 minute meal.

Artichoke Manicotti
Served with a simple side salad (spinach, basil, carrots, grated herbed feta, pine nuts, and Balsamic vinaigrette) and a glass of Sangiovese from Bluff Dale Vineyards. Recipe based on menu item from Eastside Cafe in Austin, Texas.

Preheat oven to 350. Process pistachios in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Place pistachios on a baking sheet and roast in oven for 10 minutes. Set aside.

In the mean time, heat olive oil in saute pan over medium heat. Saute onions for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in mushrooms and saute another 5 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and onions are soft and translucent. Add sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and garlic. Saute for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, combine mozzarrella, Parmesan, and ricotta. Add in mushroom-onion mixture, roasted pistachios, salt and a pinch of black pepper, and combine well. Add in drained and coarsely chopped artichoke hearts and incorporate into other ingredients.

Simmer whipping cream, sun-dried tomatoes, and tomato sauce in a medium saucepan for 15 minutes over low heat. Remove from heat and add in sour cream, garlic, salt, and pepper. Whisk together until smooth.

Whenever I go to a bakery/deli style restaurant, I’m almost guaranteed to order the half sandwich and a cup of soup combo. Trying to recreate this experience at home with some items that are not so standard (you can only have so many club sandwiches with a cup of broccoli cheddar), I made a fancy tuna melt and a pot of carrot chickpea barley soup for lunch.

Toast bread 1 minute on each side and place on a baking sheet. Spoon tuna casserole onto bread, mounding it all the way to the edges. Top tuna with shredded Swiss cheese and return the bread to the oven. Cook until cheese has melted and browned at edges, 1 to 3 minutes.

Serves 2

Carrot Chickpea Barley Soup
an easy variation of the recipe from the March 2007 issue of Shape magazine

I spend my Monday and Wednesday evenings in class so cooking a Valentine’s dinner on the actual holiday was out of the question. So I tried to add little romantic touches on dinner last night. But dinner still needed to be quick, as I’m swamped at work and getting off early on Friday was out of the question.

Mix together fish sauce, soy sauce, and brown sugar in small bowl. Place marinade in ziplock bag with sliced steak pieces and refrigerate/marinate for about 30 minutes.

While beef is marinating, heat oil in wok over high heat. When oil is hot, add in fresh whole basil leaves and deep fry about 1 minute until crisp and golden. Drain grease from basil leaves on paper towels, lightly crush (should be easy since leaves will be crispy). Do this in several batches as needed depending on the size of your wok. Remove wok from heat and pour off all but 2 tbsp of the oil.

Reheat wok with the 2 tbsp of oil over medium high heat. Add in chiles, garlic, ginger, and sliced shallot and stir-fry for about a minute or until garlic is golden brown. Add in marinated beef and stir-fry 4 to 5 minutes or until beef is done throughout. Add in corn starch to thicken the sauce (optional, purely preference). Add in crushed deep fried basil leaves. Add in a squeeze of lemon juice and freshly ground black pepper.

Serve thai basil beef on top of steamed jasmine rice and top with a few pieces of chopped fresh basil.

Combine ingredients in a medium bowl and beat with mixer on medium speed until smooth. Easy, huh? It’s creamier and less sugary than store-bought icing, but you will need to refrigerate the cake/cupcakes until you’re ready to serve.

I love soup. The chilly weather is a great excuse for me to try out old favorites and new creations. Tonight, a new one that will be making many returns in my kitchen, creamy artichoke soup served with cheddar jalapeno corn muffins.

In medium mixing bowl, stir together dry mix, egg, and buttermilk until mixture is evenly moist throughout (it will be a little lumpy). Melt butter in a small bowl in microwave and pour into corn muffin mix. Add in chopped jalapenos, cheddar cheese, and sugar and stir well.

Grease muffin pan with cooking spray. Fill each muffin pan half full with mixture and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.